Liga MX, also known as Liga BBVA MX for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Mexico and the highest level of the Mexican football league system. Formerly known as Liga Mayor (1943–1949) and Primera División de México (1949–2012). It has 18 participating clubs, the season is divided into two short tournaments, which are named Apertura from July to December and Clausura from January to May. The champions of each tournament are decided by a final phase, commonly known as Liguilla. Since 2020, promotion and relegation has been suspended until the 2025–26 season, while promotion and relegation return from 2026–27 season.
The league currently ranks first in CONCACAF's league ranking index. According to the IFFHS, Liga MX was ranked as the 10th strongest league in the first decade of the 21st century. According to CONCACAF, the league – with an average attendance of 25,557 during the 2014–15 season – draws the largest crowds on average of any football league in the Americas and the third largest crowds of any professional sports league in North America, behind only the NFL and MLB. It is also the fourth most attended football league in the world behind the Bundesliga, Premier League and La Liga. Liga MX ranks second in terms of television viewership in the United States, behind the English Premier League.
América is the most successful club with 16 titles, followed by Guadalajara with 12 titles, Toluca with 11 titles, Cruz Azul with 9 titles, Tigres UANL and León with 8 titles each, Pachuca and Pumas UNAM with 7 titles each. In all, twenty-four clubs have won the top professional division at least once.
In 1922, after the foundation of the first football federation in Mexico, they created the Primera Fuerza, which was the first amateur league organized by a national football federation. It was held from 1922 to 1943, although most of the participating teams were from Mexico City and the first matches held outside the country's capital were played until the 1940–41 season.
Many club owners were keen to remain amateur although they paid players under the table. The increasing interest in football would not thwart a unified professional football system in the country. The first true national and professional league in Mexico was established in 1943, under the name Liga Mayor.
The final phase, called Liguilla, was played using various formats to determine the champions. The most common format was a straight knock-out between the top eight teams in the table. At other times the league was divided into groups with the top two in each group, often as well as the best 3rd placed teams, qualifying for the liguilla and in some seasons the playoff matches themselves involved teams playing in groups with the group winners playing off for the title. The format was changed from season to season to accommodate international club commitments and the schedule of the Mexico national team.
The change in the rules affected teams that traditionally dominated the table, as talented teams that had not performed well in the regular season were able to perform successfully in the final phase (Cruz Azul in the 1970s, América in the 1980s, and Toluca in the 2000s).
On August 20, 2018, it was announced that Liga MX would begin testing the use of VAR technology. The initial test run was conducted during under-20 matches played inside senior league stadiums, with live testing across senior Liga MX matches taking place during weeks 13 and 14 of the Apertura tournament. The league needed final approval from FIFA to fully implement the technology.
From 1996 to 2002, the league followed a schedule consisting of two short tournaments in the season, Invierno and Verano tournaments. From 2002 to 2011, the 18 teams were divided into three groups of six, with the top two teams from each group and the two best third-place teams qualifying for the liguilla. The teams played in the same group for each tournament. The qualification phase of the tournament lasted 17 weeks, with all teams playing each other once per tournament in a home and away series over both tournaments.
The champions are awarded the Liga MX trophy, and the runners-up is awarded a smaller version of the trophy. The start of La liguilla in 1970 modernized the league despite the disagreements between the traditionalists and the modernists. Clubs that were near bankruptcy were now better able to compete and generate profits.
Prior to the start of the 2017–18 season, the rules for relegation and promotion changed: if a team wins promotion but does not meet certain Liga MX requirements (e.g. stadium infrastructure and a youth team) the relegated Liga MX team of that season will be obligated to pay the prize money to the Ascenso MX team (Mexican peso120 million) for winning the promotion playoff, which should be utilized to fulfill necessary requirements for promotion within the next season, and remain in Ascenso MX, and the relegated Liga MX team will remain in the first division. However, if the relegated Liga MX team cannot distribute the prize money to the promoted Ascenso MX team, both teams will lose their right to play in Liga MX and must play in Ascenso MX the following season.
As of the 2018–19 season, only six teams met the full requirements to be promoted to Liga MX, those teams being Atlético San Luis, Atlante, Celaya, Juárez, Sinaloa, and UdeG.
On April 16, 2020, the Ascenso MX was folded due to the COVID-19 pandemic as well as the lack of financial resources. Liga MX President Enrique Bonilla later announced during a video meeting with the club owners of the league that promotion and relegation would be suspended for six years. During the suspension, the Ascenso MX was replaced with the Liga de Expansión MX although no club from that league will be promoted to Liga MX nor any Liga MX team that performs poorly will be relegated from the Liga MX for the time being.
In May 2025, a group of ten league member clubs from the Liga de Expansión filed a lawsuit before the Court of Arbitration for Sport seeking the reinstatement of promotion and relegation between the Liga de Expansión and Liga MX; four teams subsequently dropped the lawsuit, the six remaining teams formed an opposing bloc within the league, which was formed with the aim of combating some of the measures that had occurred previously, their first triumph was the rejection of the relocation of Celaya F.C. to Veracruz and the sale of the affiliation certificate between Cimarrones de Sonora and Club Jaiba Brava.
On September 4, 2025, the Court of Arbitration for Sport issued its verdict on the dispute filed by the six Liga de Expansión clubs seeking to reinstate promotion to Liga MX. The ruling established the return of relegation on the Liga MX starting with the 2026–27 season; however, the CAS allowed the Mexican Football Federation to retain the authority to establish the requirements for clubs to be promoted to the top flight of Mexican football, returning to a situation similar to that in place before the creation of the Liga de Expansión in 2020.
With Liga MX sending a minimum of six teams to the Champions Cup (Liga MX can send a maximum of nine teams if three Liga MX teams all hold the top three spots in the Leagues Cup), these rules still generally apply, although if a team qualifies for the Champions Cup via Liga MX and the Leagues Cup, the spot is given to the next best team in the aggregate table. If a team is the highest-ranked tournament champion or the champion of both Apertura and Clausura tournaments and also wins the Leagues Cup for that same cycle, both the Apertura and Clausura champions qualify for the round of 16.
Apertura 2024 |
Clausura 2022 |
– |
Guardianes 2021 |
Clausura 2017 |
– |
Guardianes 2020 |
– |
Apertura 2019 |
Invierno 1998 |
Apertura 2022 |
1989–90 |
– |
Clausura 2018 |
Apertura 2012 |
Clausura 2025 |
Clausura 2023 |
Clausura 2011 |
+Performance by club |
1965–66, 1970–71, 1975–76, 1983–84, 1984–85, Prode 1985, 1987–88, 1988–89, Verano 2002, Clausura 2005, Clausura 2013, Apertura 2014, Apertura 2018, Apertura 2023, Clausura 2024, Apertura 2024 |
1956–57, 1958–59, 1959–60, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1963–64, 1964–65, 1969–70, 1986–87, Verano 1997, Apertura 2006, Clausura 2017 |
1966–67, 1967–68, 1974–75, Verano 1998, Verano 1999, Verano 2000, Apertura 2002, Apertura 2005, Apertura 2008, Bicentenario 2010, Clausura 2025 |
1968–69, México 1970, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1973–74, 1978–79, 1979-80, Invierno 1997, Guardianes 2021 |
1947–48, 1948–49, 1951–52, 1955–56, 1991–92, Apertura 2013, Clausura 2014, Guardianes 2020 |
1977–78, 1981–82, Apertura 2011, Apertura 2015, Apertura 2016, Apertura 2017, Clausura 2019, Clausura 2023 |
1976–77, 1980–81, 1990–91, Clausura 2004, Apertura 2004, Clausura 2009, Clausura 2011 |
Invierno 1999, Invierno 2001, Apertura 2003, Clausura 2006, Clausura 2007, Clausura 2016, Apertura 2022 |
Invierno 1996, Verano 2001, Clausura 2008, Clausura 2012, Clausura 2015, Clausura 2018 |
México 1986, Clausura 2003, Apertura 2009, Apertura 2010, Apertura 2019 |
1946–47, 1992-93, Apertura 2007 |
1950–51, Apertura 2021, Clausura 2022 |
1994–95, 1995–96, Invierno 1998 |
1982–83, 1989–90 |
1954–55, 1957–58 |
1945–46, 1949–50 |
1962–63 |
Invierno 2000 |
1944–45 |
1993–94 |
1943–44 |
1952–53 |
1953–54 |
Apertura 2012 |
– |
– |
– |
– |
– |
– |
– |
América | Mexico City | Estadio Ciudad de los Deportes (temporary) | 34,253 |
Atlas | Guadalajara | Estadio Jalisco | 56,713 |
Atlético San Luis | San Luis Potosí | Estadio Alfonso Lastras Ramírez | 25,111 |
Cruz Azul | Mexico City | Estadio Olímpico Universitario (temporary) | 72,000 |
Guadalajara | Zapopan | Estadio Akron | 45,364 |
Juárez | Ciudad Juárez | Estadio Olímpico Benito Juárez | 19,703 |
León | León | Estadio León | 31,297 |
Mazatlán | Mazatlán | Estadio El Encanto | 25,000 |
Monterrey | Guadalupe | Estadio BBVA | 53,500 |
Club Necaxa | Aguascalientes | Estadio Victoria | 25,500 |
Pachuca | Pachuca | Estadio Hidalgo | 25,922 |
Club Puebla | Puebla | Estadio Cuauhtémoc | 51,726 |
Querétaro | Querétaro | Estadio Corregidora | 33,162 |
Santos Laguna | Torreón | Estadio Corona | 30,000 |
Club Tijuana | Tijuana | Estadio Caliente | 27,333 |
Toluca | Toluca | Estadio Nemesio Díez | 30,000 |
Tigres UANL | San Nicolás de los Garza | Estadio Universitario de la UANL | 42,000 |
Pumas UNAM | Mexico City | Estadio Olímpico Universitario | 72,000 |
In previous years, when a team was relegated, the team that was promoted could only negotiate with the company holding the television rights of the relegated team. This agreement was canceled by Liga MX in 2012 when the promotion of Club León caused a television rights dispute with Televisa. Currently, Club León matches are broadcast in Mexico by Fox Sports and other online media sites, and in the United States by Univision (Telemundo from 2013–16).
Telelatino and Fox Sports World formerly hold broadcasting rights in Canada. From 2019–20 until 2021–22, OneSoccer broadcast the league for Canada viewers.
Fox Sports is the only network that holds rights to broadcast selected matches in United States and South America.
Additionally, Televisa-owned networks Sky Sports and TUDN hold exclusive broadcasting rights over selected matches throughout the regular season, although the majority of the most important ones are broadcast live on the national networks. The coverage also available for Central America viewers.
Most of the Saturday afternoon and evening matches broadcast by Televisa are shown primarily on XEQ-TV, though Saturday games played by Televisa's club America, are broadcast on Televisa's flagship network, Canal de las Estrellas. However, a blackout policy is usually applied in selected markets where affiliates are forced to air alternate programming during the matches, Sunday noon and afternoon games broadcast by Televisa are shown on Canal de las Estrellas. All of the games broadcast by TV Azteca on Saturday and Sunday are shown on Azteca 13; Friday's matches however are shown on Azteca 7. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday (known in Mexico as Fecha Doble or Double Date) matches picked by the national networks are shown on XHGC-TV and Azteca 7 and the rest of the matches air on Sky Sports and TDN.
A recent rule, in effect since 2011, requires teams to play the final game of every season on Sunday during prime time, regardless of whether the team used to play local games in another timeslot, in order to capture more television audience during the game. This also prevents most playoff collusion, where one or both teams already in the liguilla put in lesser effort to lose or draw, in order to draw a more favorable opponent.
For the Apertura 2016, and the majority of the Clausura 2017, Guadalajara home matches in Mexico were not shown on over-the-air television or cable and satellite operators. Instead, they were exclusively shown on an Streaming media service called Chivas TV. As of April 8, 2017, the matches are shown on both Televisa's Televisa Deportes Network (TDN) and Chivas TV.
On February 13, 2017, it was announced Univision Deportes would live stream 46 games in English on Facebook in the United States.
After the Clausura 2017 season, Azteca América sold the rights of the Atlas, Morelia, Tijuana, and Veracruz matches to Univision. The network then held the rights of 17 of the 18 clubs, only missing recently promoted Lobos BUAP. In September 2017, Univision began airing Lobos BUAP's home matches, thus holding the rights to all 18 Liga MX teams through the end of the Clausura 2018 season.
In July 2017, Televisión Nacional de Chile (TVN) announced it would show Liga MX matches involving Chilean players in Chile.
In October 2017, Fox Sports announced that it acquired the long-term exclusive Spanish-language rights to Tijuana and Santos Laguna home matches in the United States, Mexico, and the rest of Latin America starting in the Apertura 2018 and Apertura 2019 respectively, thus ending Univision's monopoly. The matches air on Fox Sports in the United States (via Fox Deportes) and the rest of Latin America (including Mexico and excluding Brazil).
On May 26, 2018, Fox Sports announced it acquired the rights of C.F. Monterrey's home matches in the United States and Latin America. The network announced the matches would be shown in the United States on Fox Deportes in Spanish as well as the Fox Sports family of networks in English.
As of the Apertura 2019 season, via a sublicense agreement with Univision, ESPN Deportes airs the majority of León, Necaxa, Pachuca, Querétaro, and UANL regular season home matches in the United States. The network also airs at least one home match of nine other clubs. Televisa also sublicenses one match per week to ESPN in Mexico and Central America.
In Brazil, DAZN broadcast the league for two seasons 2019–20 and 2020–21.
On 15 July 2021, OneFootball announced it would broadcast between two and five live matches as part of a deal covering the 2021/22 Liga MX season in selected international markets.
On 16 August 2021, Eleven Sports announced it would broadcast the home Liga MX matches of C.D. Guadalajara for the 2021-22 season in more than 100 countries.
Atlas | |
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Peacock | |
Estrella TV Tubi | |
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Estrella TV | |
Vix |
Since 1986, Voit has been the official match ball manufacturer. In 2014, the contract was extended for four years.
América | ||||
Juárez | ||||
Querétaro | ||||
Toluca | ||||
Guido Pizarro | Tigres UANL | |||
Pumas UNAM | ||||
Club Tijuana | ||||
Santos Laguna | ||||
Mazatlán | ||||
Monterrey | ||||
Gabriel Milito | Guadalajara | |||
Pachuca | ||||
Atlético San Luis | ||||
Club Necaxa | ||||
Cruz Azul | ||||
Atlas | ||||
Club Puebla | ||||
León |
1 | Óscar Pérez | 741 |
2 | Oswaldo Sánchez | 725 |
3 | Benjamín Galindo | 700 |
4 | Juan Pablo Rodríguez | 685 |
5 | Jesús Corona | 682 |
6 | Rodrigo Ruiz | 638 |
7 | Adolfo Ríos | 635 |
8 | Miguel España | 631 |
9 | Julio César Domínguez | 616 |
10 | Alfonso Sosa | 610 |
Italics denotes players still playing professional football. Bold denotes players still playing in Liga MX. |
1 | Evanivaldo Castro | |||||
2 | Carlos Hermosillo | |||||
3 | Jared Borgetti | |||||
4 | José Cardozo | |||||
5 | Horacio Casarín | |||||
6 | Osvaldo Castro | |||||
7 | Luís Roberto Alves | |||||
8 | Adalberto López | |||||
9 | Carlos Eloir Perucci | |||||
10 | Sergio Lira | |||||
Italics denotes players still playing professional football. Bold denotes players still playing in the Liga MX. |
+Relegation and promotion by club |
5 (1961–62, 1965–66, 1976–77, 1982–83, 1984–85) |
3 (1972–73, 1992–93, 1996–97) |
2 (1971–72, 1990–91) |
2 (1973–74, 2003–04) |
3 (1953–54, 1970–71, 1977–78) |
2 (1980–81, 1983–84) |
1 (1952–53) |
5 (1951–52, 1978–79, 1997–98, 2007–08, 2018–19*) |
3 (1975–76, 1989–90, 2013–14) |
3 (1993–94, 2006–07, 2012–13*) |
2 (1955–56, 1959–60) |
2 (1966–67, 1974–75) |
2 (1986–87, 1991–92) |
2 (1986–87, 2001–02) |
2 (2005–06, 2015–16) |
2 (2008–09, 2010–11) |
1 (1956–57) |
1 (1967–68) |
1 (1960–61) |
1 (1995–96) |
3 (1957–58, 1962–63, 1981–82) |
2 (1987–88, 1994–95) |
2 (1998–99*, 2004–05) |
1 (1958–59) |
1 (1964–65) |
1 (1968–69) |
1 (1988–89) |
1 (2011–12) |
1 (1999–00) |
1 (1994–95*) |
1 (2009–10) |
1 (2014–15) |
1 (2017–18*) |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
— |
1 (1950–51) |
1 (1954–55) |
1 (1979–80) |
1 (2002–03) |
1 (2016–17) |
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